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Reporters’ Notebook

OLAF FUB SEZ: One of our favorite lines from actor and singer-songwriter Kris Kristofferson, born on this date in 1936: “Freedom’s just another word for nothin’ left to lose.”

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CRAFTS – Watercolor painting, calligraphy, printing on fabric and metalworking are among demonstrations scheduled during the 40th annual Roycroft Summer Festival from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and Sunday on the grounds of Parkdale Elementary School, 141 Girard Ave., East Aurora. Roughly 80 juried artists and demonstrations will be featured. Admission is free.

Food tents and music also will be featured throughout the festival. On Sunday, the annual Roycroft Goodie Box, filled with handcrafted items by Roycroft artisans and valued at nearly $6,000, will be raffled. For more info, visit the Roycrofters-At-Large Association website at ralaweb.com.

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GOOD READS – The Friends of the East Aurora Library will be holding a huge used book sale, with thousands of books, CDs, DVDs and puzzles, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday and 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday in the First Presbyterian Church, Main and Paine streets, across from the library. A pre-sale for Friends members will be held from 5 to 8:30 p.m. Thursday. Membership is available at the door. For info, call the library at 652-4440.

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WORDS OF WISDOM – Career statesman Juan A. Alsace, the U.S. consul general in Toronto, will be the keynote speaker at the fourth annual Hispanic Community Breakfast sponsored by the Hispanic Heritage Council of Western New York at 9 a.m. Saturday in Templeton Landing, 2 Templeton Terrace at Erie Basin Marina. Tickets are $30. For info and reservations, visit hispanicheritagewny.org.

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MUSIC, MUSIC, MUSIC – The First Baptist Church of Newfane, a historic cobblestone church at 6047 East Ave., Newfane, will host the contemporary Christian group Elmwood Drive for an outdoor concert at 7 p.m. Friday. Admission is free. For info, call 778-9216 or visit firstbaptistnewfane.com.

The Strike the Rock Band will offer hymns done Southern bluegrass style at the 10 a.m. service Sunday in St. Peter’s United Church of Christ, 1475 Orchard Park Road, West Seneca. All are welcome.

Van Taylor & Friends will present “Music on the Front Lines: Serving Music to Those Who Served,” a pre-Fourth of July patriotic program to honor veterans buried in Forest Lawn at 7 p.m. Monday. The concert, which opens the cemetery’s Monday Music in the Meadow series, will take place at the gazebo next to the chapel. Blankets and lawn chairs are welcome. Alcoholic beverages are not allowed. Those who arrive after 7 p.m. should come to the Delaware Avenue gate. Tickets are $10 and are available at forest-lawn.com.

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BROADER HORIZONS – A series of free summer reading and writing camps for youngsters will be offered during the coming weeks by Dog Ears Bookstore and Cafe, 688 Abbott Road.

Held from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. daily and sponsored by South Council Member Christopher Scanlon, the camp will be offered for 7- and 8-year-olds from Monday to July 1, for those aged 9 to 11 from July 11 to July 15 and for those 12 and 13 from July 18 to July 22.

A free summer reading and writing camp for teens will be offered from 6:30 to 8 p.m. Tuesdays from July 5 to Aug. 23. Also sponsored by Scanlon, it’s limited to teens living in the South District.

Erie County Youth Services also will sponsor a free summer reading and writing camp open to all Erie County residents from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. daily for 7- and 8-year-olds from July 25 to July 29, for those 9 to 11 from Aug. 1 to Aug. 5 and for those 12 and 13 from Aug. 15 to Aug. 19.

Registration for all reading and writing camps is limited to 20 students. For more info, call 823-2665 or visit dogearsbookstore.org.

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LEARNING CURVE – Frontier Community Education’s summer classes for adults and youngsters begin Monday in the Big Tree Elementary School, 4460 Bay View Road, Hamburg. Among the offerings are the Bricks 4 Kidz Galaxy Far Away Camp and Adult Ballet and Literature Adventure camps. Registration is 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. through Friday at the school or online at frontier.wnyric.org. For more info, visit the website or call 926-1744.

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SAFETY FIRST – The Chautauqua County Sheriff’s Office will hold a boater safety course from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. next Wednesday in the Town of Chautauqua offices, 2 Academy St., Mayville. The course, which is state-mandated for anyone 10 or older to operate a motorboat and anyone 14 or older to operate a personal watercraft, is free for those aged 10 to 17 and $10 for those 18 and older. No preregistration is required. Those who attend should bring a bagged lunch. Parents of those under 18 must sign a release. For more info, call the sheriff’s Marine Division at 753-4929 or visit sheriff.us.